| Reviews for Avantasia's Avantasia: The Metal Opera - Part II |
| Summit of Sammet 2 - 80% |
| Written by Hidius
on June 16th, 2008
|
| This is part 2 of the Metal Opera, though it doesn’t play like the first part. This plays like a standard power metal album. Part 1 seemed to tell a story, while this falls apart toward the middle. The first song and the last couple of songs fit into the story while retaining the more operatic sound of the first part, but everything in between could have been on any normal Edguy record. Also, to my ears at least, the production on this one sounds duller, whereas the first part had sharp, crisp sound that gave the guitars an electric edge, reminding me of Theater of Salvation’s sound. The choruses on this one, except the first song and the last couple, are much less intricate and dramatic than those on part 1. Another point of contention with Sammet are his piano ballads. On the early Edguy albums there was always one boring song with just a piano and Sammet singing. Inside, on part 1, was like that, almost exactly the same as what he did in Edguy. I always skip these unnecessary songs because I can’t even sit through 60 seconds of it. On part 2 of the Metal Opera there is another one, though this one is different. In Quest For features a nice vocal interplay, leaving Sammet’s lifeless ballad singing out of it for the most part. It’s much better than any other such song he’s written, but still kind of boring. I even skip this one. Anywhere is far superior starting in a similar fashion but building to something interesting with the full band supporting the song, adding drama and keeping the listener awake for once. I can’t help but compare this to the first one because it’s supposed to be a continuation of that one in many ways, and in most of those ways it seems to fall behind the expectations built by its predecessor. The story is not as easy to follow here, the sound is different, and the symphonic interludes are gone. Though these things make for a more album-like listening experience, the title says it’s the Metal Opera part 2. Part 1 was much closer to being a real metal opera than this one. Part 2 seems drab in comparison to part 1, in spite of the four or five great songs that save it. Indeed, The Seven Angles and Into the Unknown account for most of the eighty percent rating this album received from me. |
| More of the same, but still going strong - 78% |
| Written by Empyreal
on November 5th, 2007
|
| If you heard the first Avantasia album, you know what to expect here. This is 100% power metal right down to the core; high pitched, melodic vocals, fast-paced and speedy riffs and melodies, double bass drums, and all drenched with a healthy layer of synths (buy some now and get one free!). How much can I actually write about the music here? It's a tried and true formula by a bunch of musicians who have been doing it for a long time, and this is no less than what anyone expected. It's not a newborn classic as behind the scenes mastermind and lead vocalist Tobias Sammet touts it as, nor is it anything close to horrible or disappointing. It's just another solid Avantasia outing. Sammet made the mistake of putting the 14 minute behemoth "The Seven Angels" right at the front of the album here, and it's without a doubt the best song on the album and one of the best he ever penned. It's pretty much the only song on both current Avantasia albums worthy of the title "metal opera," with every single vocalist putting in a few parts, and even blending together a couple times to form a majestic, heavenly choir that revokes (once again) strong, strong images of Edguy's Theater of Salvation album, feeling as if it would not be out of place in a gigantic cathedral. Somber, driving melodies and even some slightly heavier riffs meet to form a kingly epic, and if Sammet could write a whole album of stuff on this level of quality instead of talking trash and bragging, we really would have the classic he promised. The other songs here are not near the quality of "The Seven Angels," but there are gems to be uncovered - the speedy, Helloweenesque "No Return," the pounding, riffy "Memory," the catchy "Chalice of Agony," and especially the monstrous, powerful smash of "The Final Sacrifice." Aside from having a few too many ballads (and one really shitty one; the tepid "In Quest For"), this is still a grandiose tour de force in power metal, and I can only fault it for bringing nothing new to the table in comparison to Avantasia's first effort. If this is your thing, then don't bother reading this review a second time; just go get it. Originally written for http://www.metalcrypt.com |
| The monument to Mr Sammet's ego (part II) - 30% |
| Written by Sean16
on October 14th, 2006
|
| Thanks to a couple of outstanding tracks, Avantasia pt. I had managed to be a bit more than an average power metal album from one of the most pretentious morons on this Earth, Mr Tobias Sammet. But the man wasn’t still content with it: unfortunately, he recorded a second part. This paragraph is for those who missed the first half of this captivating story. Describing this second part is very simple. The first part showed 13 tracks, amongst them 4 useless interludes, 3 crappy tracks, 3 honest, but not outstanding tracks and 3 excellent ones. This one shows 10 tracks, no useless interlude (not that the interludes have become “useful”, but there simply are no more of them), 7 crappy tracks, 2 honest ones and an excellent one. And, worst of all, the excellent track is the first. Never, NEVER put the longest track at the beginning of an album, especially if it’s the best one. This generally ruins the rest of the work, making it look pale in comparison (this could be called the X Factor Syndrome, you must guess what I mean). They might be exceptions, like Draconian’s Where Lovers Mourn, but for a good reason: Where Lovers Mourn is excellent from the beginning to the end. Of course this is far from being the case of Avantasia II. The “opera” concept was already questionable in the first part, Mr Sammet assuming 50% of the vocal duties, here, it tends to become a complete joke. Not only the man sings even more than on the first part, but every kind of dialogue between the different singers has almost disappeared. Generally only one single singer (plus Mr Sammet of course) appears in each song. For instance Neverland will be Rob Rock’s song, The Final Sacrifice is David Defeis’s song, Memory Ralf Zdiarstek’s song and so on. Oh, and I forgot the best: Anywhere is sung by Mr Tobias Sammet ONLY. It’s so grotesque it had to be mentioned! Not only the whole opera concept now totally fails, but the music is generic at best. This doesn’t apply to the opener The Seven Angels, as said before an excellent track of melodic/symphonic power metal. Almost every singer is present, from high-pitched vocals master André Matos to the “pope” Oliver Hartmann (the character he plays couldn’t have been more fitting, as this man really IS the pope of power metal singers), without forgetting the characteristic, almost voiceless Kai Hansen, and of course Michael Kiske. The structure is complex, with its succession of different parts, tempo and vocalists changes and orchestral accompaniment, but avoids being totally messy. The slow, majestic end and its handful of choirs especially has to be underlined. In comparison all the other tracks are desperately simple, and utterly easy. It’s evident: Mr Sammet spent on those tracks hardly 1/10 of the time he spent on the first Avantasia outfit. No Return and Chalice of Agony are high-paced power metal songs, nice and lively if you want but predictable as fuck, standard verse/chorus with keyboards in the background and the whole accompaniment of clichés. Worse, Mr Sammet didn’t even bother to write new songs: he simply shamelessly took some he had previously written. I’m talking about the fifth and sixth tracks especially. Avantasia is contemporary of Edguy’s album Mandrake, and there’s little to say against Mandrake: it’s a good power metal album from a good power metal band, as Edguy still was a good band at that time. Now just listen to both albums carefully: The Final Sacrifice is the perfect twin sister of Nailed to the Wheel, which is one of the weakest Mandrake songs to begin with, while Neverland is a mixture of Tears of a Mandrake, Golden Dawn and Fallen Angels. Remaining song are either the usual unlistenable piano-driven ballads (In Quest For, Anywhere), a cheesy orchestral conclusion featuring Sharon den Adel (but the song would have been terrible even without her to be honest) and two others tracks which aren’t very imaginative to begin with, but are indeed totally ruined by the singers (The Looking Glass, Memory). So, the singers. Their part is reduced as mentioned before, but Mr Tobias Sammet could have at least selected the best of them to do the remaining job. Where is André Matos? Where is Oliver Hartmann? Even Michael Kiske, who played a large part in the previous opus, is now limited to the first two track. Instead of those what do we got? Rob Rock and his slightly eerie voice does a good job on Neverland, but the music doesn’t follow, and coming to Bob Catley and Ralf Zdiarstek, they’re simply abysmal. Ralf Zdiarstek doesn’t even sing, and Bob Catley, here is the problem, sings. With the most annoying off-key pop-ish tremolos you could ever imagine. I seriously wonder where Mr Sammet found those two singers, but what was sure is he didn’t run the risk to be eclipsed by them. Maybe if someone should tell this pretentious buffoon to shut up and eventually write decent songs instead of shamelessly stealing money from listeners who felt elated by Avantasia I, by offering them this complete joke of an album as a follower. Or maybe everyone should stop buying anything from him. But I’m not even sure he would notice it. Highlights: The Seven Angels |
| Weaker if compared to part I. Two highlights - 40% |
| Written by aplws
on September 28th, 2006
|
| This is the second part of the highly praised ‘Avantasia – The Metal Opera Part I’. A project put together by the vocalist of Edguy, Tobbias Sammett. The musicians involved are the same ones from part I such as H.Richter (guitars),M.Grosskopf (bass) and A.Holzwarth (drums). The huge list of guest vocalists is also the same with the addition of two new faces: Michael Kiske, David Defeis, Andre Matos, Rob Rock, Oliver Hartmann, Bob Catley, Kai Hansen, Sharon den Adel and Ralf Zdiarstek! Pretty impressive! Musically for the most part this is symphonic, epic, European power metal (a cross betwenn Edguy, Rhapsody, Angra). Operatic, usually clean and high pitched vocals, double bass drumming and melodic guitar playing. Vocally this relish is flawless as the names involved are the cream of European power metal and the instrumentation is tight as all musicians participating are some of the genres best aswell. Though I didn't think that the first part was outstanding it was nevertheless an overall great relish as it contained songs like 'Reach Out For The Light', 'Sign Of The Cross', 'Farewell' and the epic 'The Tower'...well this release really disappointed me. Besides “The Seven Angels” and “The Final Sacrifice” the rest of the songs have less power than the ones on the first record, the guest vocalists get even smaller parts and in general the songwriting is weaker, kind of boring and predictable. At least on the first record you had the magnificent vocals of Michael Kiske to look for; here he appears briefly in only 2 tracks, one of which isn't anything special... "The Seven Angels" counts the contribution of 7 vocalists; its length surpasses the 14 minute mark and at some places manages to bring the metal opera feeling across. The song begins slowly with a church like choir section guided only by drums and bass in the background. Shortly after, all instruments kick in and Sammett begins to sing accompanied by backing vocals which are provided by several singers. The main riff and rhythm section continue and we witness a magnificent vocal battle between Oliver Hartmann, Michael Kiske and Rob Rock. All three sing in terns and the contrast between Hartmann’s and Rock’s rawer vocals and Kiske’s strong high pitched delivery creates a wonderful atmosphere. Sammett takes over the lead vocals next and soon comes the catchy chorus with layers of backing voices. Onwards follows the same vocal battle as before between Hartmann, Kiske and David Defeis while again Sammett peaks up the vocal duties once more leading to the second chorus. Up to now the instrumental part of the song doesn’t really vary, a nice and strong guitar riff, nice bass playing, steady drumming and the fantastic blending of different voices creates an atmosphere worthy of the metal opera title. After the chorus the tempo becomes a bit faster and a short guitar solo by Henjo Ritcher together with some nice drum brakes lead onto a very slow instrumental-orchestral moment provided by the use of keyboards. This orchestral part continues for almost 2 minutes and then all instruments kick in a mid tempo symphonic rock form to accompany Timo Tolkki’s voice who sings in unison with more backing vocals. The tempo gradually gets faster with the use of double bass drumming and after a short drum brake a nice power metal guitar solo is provided by the after mentioned Timo Tolkki. Up to this point the song is great, a true epic that may deserve to be called a masterpiece! BUT after the 7:45 minute mark a strange change in the tempo and musical approach truly kills the song! A soft piano based melody accompanies Sammett’s voice into a Queen meets Savatage type of rhythm section which leads to the end of the song. Michael Kiske, Kai Hansen and Andre Matos also join in and sing some lines but the musical style really isn’t anything impressive and detracts from the continuation of the whole track. Also the production regarding the vocals on this part of the song is strange making them sound kind of weak. In conclusion half of the song is a true heavy-power metal epic and the rest below average and uninspired. “The Final Sacrifice” is the best song on offer here! It begins with a church organ sound but soon bursts into high gear with a thrash riff followed by double base drumming, the combination of which results into an aggressive type of power-speed metal rhythm that drives the whole track. After a sudden brake, the double bass is removed but the aggression remains as Sammett begins singing the verses in a way that reminds of Rob Halford. Following another brake, Sammet sings for a short while in a melodic way and suddenly all hell brakes loose as we get to the ultra catchy chorus with tones of double bass and sharp guitar riffs! The same formula is repeated again, only this time we have David Defeis behind the mic and his aggressive-raw singing really contrasts Sammet’s clean and high delivery in a nice way. After the second chorus the tempo slows down a bit for a melodic and at parts thrashy solo, reminding of Slayer and then we get the chorus repeated twice before the end. Other tracks worth a mention are “No Return” with Sammett, Kiske and Matos, a typical Helloween-Edguy song, not really bad but nothing interesting either. The other one is “Neverland” which is a similar song to Avantasia from part I, trying to be catchy but not delivering the goods. Although some Edguy or Rhapsody fans may have no problem in enjoying the whole album... What can I say...other than the 2 mentioned songs just disappointing, don't waste your money. Buy "Avantasia part I" if you don't already own it, not a Metal OPERA but still a great (now-days) power metal album. (Originally written for http://www.epinions.com website) |
| Power in the Numbers. - 99% |
| Written by hells_unicorn
on March 1st, 2005
|
| When I heard of this album's release, I was convinced that what I considered to be the zenith of the genre would be reached, but for some reason I'm still stubborn enough to believe that there will be an album better than this one, and that's why I can't give it the 100% that I have yet to give, but this one got extremely close. The same bunch of musicians that pulled forces to bring us the amazing Avantasia Part 1 has now returned to dish it out once more. I can't say that it's better or worse, nor can I say it's exactly the same as it's predecessor despite that I gave it the same rating. In truth, you have to treat both CDs as one album, one story, even though they were released separately. First I will hit on the talent in this group. First rate musicians from beginning to end. I was particularly taken by the guitar work on here, the tracks laid down by Henjo Richter are mind blowing, as are the leads that he dishes out, particularly the riveting twin guitar lead on Chalice of Agony. I actually had the unique honor of teaching this solo to 2 teenagers at a summer camp who performed this song with a band of campers. I assure you it is quite challenging. But also note the efforts of Timo Tolkki and Jens Ludwig. I have to hand it to Tobias Sammet for rounding out such top notch musical collaborators for his effort. Michael Kiske's role has diminished in this part as opposed to part 1, which is my lone complaint of this album. But this has given way to include the new character performed by Bob Catley, whose voice fills the gap and puts a new feel to the story. Andre Matos and Kai Hansen are back in good form, and naturally Tobias is ruling the roost, which is the right of the man who leads the project and composes the songs. lol And on a side-note, the production is excellent. Too many albums in the power metal genre have a poor balance between the guitars and the synths, here they are both equally discernable and complement each other rather than fight each other. The voices are also well blended in with the music and don't drown out the background, which is amazing when you consider that at times 7 or 8 people are singing as a group. Here is how the songs break down. Seven Angels (10/10) - In the same vain as Edguy, Tobias brings a flair to the drawn out epic like no other. This is probably the best song that I've heard which clocks in at over 14 minutes. There is a drawn out stream of modulations in sections, combining together to make you feel that your listening to 4 or 5 different songs in succession. High points include Timo Tolkki's guitar solo, Tobias' and Kiske's meatload inspired piano and voice section which completely blew me away, and the amazing outro where Tobias, Matos and Hansen create a stream of vocal melodies that mystify the ears. An aria for the power metal ages to be sure. No Return (9.5/10) - Fast paced cooker that works nicely, but it feels lacking merely because it had to follow the massive epic which is usually the closer for such albums. Michael Kiske and Tobias do well on this one, as does the lead work by Richter. The Looking Glass (10/10) - This is an excellent mid-tempo track that features the new charactered called The Tree of Knowledge, sung by Bob Catley. What ensues is a riveting duet between two amazing singers, the lyrics on this one are very philosophical, yet work well in the fantasy world that Sammet has concocted. Another brilliant solo by Richter, along with some flashy beats by Alex Holzwarth. In Quest for (10/10) - A continuation of the Catley and Tobias duet, this time with but a lone piano and some strings in the background. With voices completely exposed to the scrutiny that normally doesn't exist with loud guitars, these two guys prove that they can match abilities with any broadway singer. Kudos for originality on this one too, considering who this song came from. Final Sacrifice (10/10) - Things get nice and rough here, Catley exits to bring in Virgin Steele screamer David Defeis, whose lion growls dwarf Tobi's banshee shreeks with thunderous fury. Jens Ludwig provides a very agitated solo which plays against the more idiomatic and structured soloing that Richter has been utilizing. Neverland (9.5/10) - Great song, featuring Rob Rock reprising his role as Bishop Von Bicken. Great vocal performances save this song from it's almost cliche musical accompaniment, which sounded alot like Gamma Ray's "One with the World" at the beginning. Anywhere (10/10) - Tobias goes it alone on this one, starting out with just a piano to back him up. This is definately one of the better power ballads I've heard. There is alot of emotion in the vocal performance, and Richter's solo uses all the precise notes to make the guitar sing as a voice rather than a highly embellished harpsichord line befitting of a shred fest. Chalice of Agony (10/10) - This song, like Seven Angels, never gets old for me. I can understand why this was chosen as a single, because it's catchy themes grab the listener immediately. This track gets my pic for best guitar solo on the album. The pace is fast and the sections contrast each other nicely. Tobias does the majority of the vocal work, but both Matos and Hansen make breif appearances to add aditional color. Nothing short of amazing. Memory (10/10) - Ralph Ziardstek reprises his role as the evil Baliff Falk Von Kronberg, the most loathsome of the characters. This song is lyrically excellent, and paints a very vivid picture of the plot, which sees justice served within it's span. Ziardstek dominates this song, but Tobias makes a brief appearance. Jens Ludwig also plays a decent solo on this one. Into the Unknown (10/10) - The exiting chorus of the story, featuring solos by Tobias and Sharon reprising her role as the main character's sister. But the real strength to this shorter closing track is in the words of the chorus. The greatest one line that Tobias ever wrote is within that chorus, and it reads.... Dreamers come and go, but a dream's forever. In conclusion, if you like Power Metal in general, you must get this album. If you enjoyed Avantasia Part 1, you must get this album. And if you like the other bands that the members of this project are in (Edguy, Gamma Ray, Rhapsody, Helloween, Virgin Steele, Stratovarius, ect.) you must get this album. No more excuses, start saving up those hard earned dollars or euros that you get for breaking rocks all day and invest it in a piece of artistic genius. |
| Even better than the first - 100% |
| Written by Forever_Myself
on July 2nd, 2004
|
| When I listened to the first album, I was instantly hooked and just HAD to get the second one. I was hoping that Avantasia would keep their original style and greatness, and they did. This album, musically, is a lot like the first. It uses that same song structure which is fine(great even). The songs sound pretty much the same but that isn’t exactly a bad thing. A lot of the songs, if not all, are extremely catchy and easy to sing along to, so if that’s your thing, you’re in luck. The Metal Opera Pt. II starts off with the epic of the album: The Seven Angels. Unlike the first album, this song is not an intro, in no way. This song is probably the best out of the whole album. Though it is 14 minutes long, it stays good the whole time, something that I find is hard to do with longer songs. The album closes with an equally awesome, nice relaxing song “Into the Unknown”. This song also has my favourite line out of any album and song ever made: “Dreamers come and go, but a dream’s forever”. This song is a perfect way to close the album. This album is the second part to the story and it helps you understand more about it. The story itself is magnificent and I personally feel it’s up there with the greats like Queensryche’s Operation: Mindcrime and Ayreon’s new album. If you don’t like albums that tell a story, by all means, listen to the songs in reverse and/or mixed up order or just don’t think of it like a story. I feel like the story adds that little bit something, but if you don’t like stories, just ignore it. Do whatever you need to, because this album must be heard. If you thought the first part was good, get ready for a surprise. This album is beyond greatness. It’s awesome from beginning to end, and will not disappoint. All I can say is that if you don’t have this album, you are missing out big time. Right after you read this, I suggest you go out and buy 500 copies of this album and give them to your friends, so that they can experience the marvel that is “Avantasia”. |
| Still searching . . . for the INSTRUMENTS . . . - 82% |
| Written by OSheaman
on August 5th, 2003
|
| Note: For those of you who want to see some of the lamest damn jokes in existence, follow this link: http://www.tobiassammet.com/weird_world.php You won't be disappointed. Now, to the album. It's basically a carbon copy of Avantasia, Part I. It continues the story of what's-his-name going of to do whatever-he's-doing in wherever-it-is in order to save whoever-she-is and defeat whatever-he's-fighting and save the world. Edge-of-your-seat stuff, if I do say so myself. They seem to have slightly bumped up the guitar volume, almost as if by accident, earning them one (1) extra point. Otherwise, we basically have the same album. The keyboards and bass continue to be louder than the guitars, which is eternally frustrating, and the drums are good, but it's annoying to hear nothing but. The vocals are good and the choruses and all that are solid stuff. Finally . . . wait for it . . . we have an actual NOTABLE SONG on here! Yes, it's true! The second song, No Return, is actually a very good Power Metal song, with distinguishable riffs and excellent vocals--it sounds like it fell right out of a Rhapsody album, but it's still very good. Also notable is Memory, which features some actual opening riffage and thus earns Avantasia some more Brownie Points. The same problems apply, too. In addition, I would like to point out that the first song, The Seven Angels, may be an epic and all, but as it seems to last the same amount of time as the entire first album, I am offcially billing the song as Way Too Goddamn Long For Its Own Good. The Looking Glass also sounds rather dull and uninspired--a problem which could have been fixed by just PLAYING THE DAMN GUITARS LOUDER. I realize you have to hear the vocals, but do you have to make the guitars sound so fucking sissy? Anyway, the same people who liked Part I will enjoy Part II. The same people who didn't won't enjoy this one either. And if you're just getting into cheesy Power Metal, I would recommend getting some Rhapsody or Blind Guardian first, as this isn't really representative of the genre. And for those of you who think these albums are the BEST ALBUMS EVAR!!!!1?!?u!?1u/U!1, be sure to follow the above link I provivded. You'll probably think the jokes are funny. |